By Jean S. HornerThe other day while walking down a corridor
in a public building, I saw what appeared to be someone walking toward
me. On coming closer, I found it was my own reflection in a huge mirror.
For a moment it frightened me. Somehow a full-length reflection of
one’s self is a startling thing. ...

Connections: Jason Frenn

Seven Amazing Prayers

Jason and Cindee Frenn are Assemblies of God missionary evangelists. Jason has ministered throughout Latin America, and carries his message of hope through his books, media appearances and visits to numerous prisons. He spoke recently with Scott Harrup, Pentecostal Evangel managing editor, about his new book, The Seven Prayers God Always Answers.

FRENN: I don’t believe we simply live in a fallen world — we live in a falling world. But for God’s constant intervention, the human race would be in a different state altogether. For that reason I believe God wants that message of healing and deliverance and salvation to be at the forefront of what we proclaim from our pulpits and in the public square to a world that is looking for solutions.

evangel: How did God bring healing into your life?

FRENN: When I was 3, my parents separated. When I was 9, they divorced. When I was 15, my mom married someone who was 32 years older than she was, and she was his sixth wife. He turned out to be a wonderful dad, but we had a rough start.

A Mexican family invited me to church when I was 15. The power went out, and the pastor called on ushers to light candles. It was the middle of February and lightly snowing in Big Bear Lake, Calif., the mountain resort community where we lived.

The pastor spoke about the One who came to set the captive free, and how God can break the cycles of bondage in anyone’s life. That marked my life, put me on a path of salvation, and gave me the message I have been proclaiming ever since. In time, my family also came to Christ. My dad, a former bartender, helped me pick the title for my latest book.

FRENN: I asked myself, Are there any absolutes? Our culture tries to make truth out to be relative. But was Christ’s work on the cross, which makes our prayers effective, absolute or relative? In the face of another book that recently came out saying hell is relative, I wanted to say, “No, there are absolutes.” My focus would not be to prove there is a hell, but to show people God’s redeeming love that allows us to experience heaven.

Is there absolute hope available through prayer? I scoured the Old and New Testaments for prayers, and I interviewed people to identify the prayers they most wanted God to answer. I asked more than 1,000 people, “If there was any prayer you needed God to answer, what would you ask Him?” The top seven categories turned out to be direction, forgiveness, freedom, provision, healing, blessing and salvation.

evangel: Talk about the prayer for direction.

FRENN: In Scripture, God provided direction for anyone who sincerely asked; it wasn’t based upon their level of spiritual maturity or their faith. He simply responded to their heart’s cry for His guidance. And I found that to be true of everyone I interviewed. That doesn’t mean God’s direction is always going to be where you want to go, but His direction is always the best direction.

evangel: How about the prayer for forgiveness?

FRENN: If we don’t believe God forgives anyone who asks Him for forgiveness, what do we believe?

evangel: Seven Prayers is not a book about manipulating God, but about receiving answers consistent with His eternal character.

FRENN: Yes. God is willing to move mountains to show how much He loves people unconditionally. He is absolutely willing to work in these seven areas to bring wholeness to our lives. We live in a falling world. God’s greatest gift is the offer of redemption from our fallen state. The greater the prize, the greater the cost. That supreme gift cost God His Son.